Columns

Winter greetings from the Healdsburg Library. We continue to work preparing for additional open hours as a result of the passage of Measure Y. As you may have heard, the library system is hiring over 30 new positions across the county. We anticipate many additional positions opening up over the next year as we work to improve library services and continue to expand open hours. In addition, we face an uncommon opportunity to improve our collections. As always, we wish to provide the most helpful information we can. If you have suggestions — such as magazine subscriptions you wish we would provide — we are all ears. We still can’t provide everything, but we’ll try to grant requests if we can.

In 1966 the movie “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming,” was filmed along the local Mendocino-Sonoma coast. In the plot, a lone enemy submarine crashes offshore, igniting a runaway rumor chain that almost leads to a machine gun battle, hostage taking and a U.S. Air Force strike. We can only imagine that if the players in the film all had Facebook and Twitter accounts how much faster the rumors of attack would have flown and how World War III might not have been avoidable.

Not all of the many changes to our daily routines, work, school, forms of communication and personal frustrations can be blamed on the coronavirus pandemic. And, not all of the disruptions and changes are temporary. Not everything will be returning to “normal” after everyone has finally been vaccinated.

Don’t look now, but is the whole state of California at risk of splitting off from the rest of America? We don’t mean from a cataclysmic earthquake along the San Andreas Fault line but from a political hailstorm that dominates all the lands and other states east of the Sierras?

Today, we flip the calendar to the new month of November, and we wish we could also turn the page on all the recent news about mail bombs, another horrific mass shooting, bitter political divisions and dismal news about pending climate and global doom. Maybe our post-election period will cast glimmers of hope, new and positive energies or a reminder that “these things too shall pass.”

1949 in Healdsburg: "Throughout the day swimming races, pie and watermelon eating contests, rowing races, a basketball game and novelty stunts kept the energetic throng on the move and whetted appetites for the stacks of hot dogs served with ice cream and soft drinks late in the afternoon..."

Happy Holidays to everyone out there. As much as I enjoy Christmas, it can be a hectic time and I’m glad to be moving forward. I’m thankful that my family spent it together, in peace and that we all enjoyed each other’s company and savored our wonderful Christmas dinner.

It’s a little early to write one of those “How I spent my summer” essays but there’s nothing wrong with getting a head start on a writing assignment. Besides, the choices and experiences for the short months between school years — for youth, teachers and all others — have multiplied and morphed since the lazier days of summer lifeguards, pumping gas or washing cars.